$100 bills, Kindle Fire, Work books, Farmers Markets...and what do they all have in common?

So I am sure everyone shares in my thoughts that this school year went SO FAST!!  

I have been getting ready to let out a huge sigh of relief as I am CURRENTLY running around daily for: 

Teddy Bear picnics, Water Days, Popsicle day, Cowgirl Day, Ice Cream Day, Graduation for preschool???  

Am I so mean when I heard Ella (unlike most kinder's apparently) doesn't have a kinder graduation and I was just thrilled.  

So looking forward to the POOL, beach house for a week, PJ's all morning, ice cream trucks, Sea World, lunch with Daddy at work, Zion National Park, Disneyland...I am sure after 2 weeks of summer break I will be begging the teachers to take them back to school, so see what we are doing (below) to try to prepare.

So with 2011-2012 school year going, going, gone...
ELLA
I can't believe THIS 5 year old girly is done with Kindergarten.  She also...

• Was academic student of the month
• Played soccer
• Did dance class
• Joined cheer leading
• learned to swim without any floatation devices
• found a $100 bill (MORE on THIS later)
• and has given me a hard time EVERY morning getting ready for school (7:45 start)

Asher
Then THIS little guy joined his first preschool class and thrived:

• loved learning ALL his letters, uppercase and lower
• can write his first and last name very well
• became great at making friends (many parents told me he helped their child become comfortable in class) he is also our "house" clown
• obsesses over puzzles, puzzles, and puzzles
• and has discovered the joys and learned the addiction through a little something(s) called the Kindle Fire and iPhone4S
• chipped most his front tooth, and has had it fixed 5x and it is still currently broken

Tate
Baby boy has only been with us for 10 months (OK, OK only 2 outside the womb, I will stop counting the other 9, although they were some of the hardest 9 months of my life).  In these 2 months or 10 weeks he has already:

• Smiled at us all
• Loves to chat  (I think I have ANOTHER talker on my hands)
• Loves to eat (can you tell from his chunky cheeks already)
• Loves his siblings
• Giving us a hard time with his formula allergy and colic (MUCH better now)
• Diagnosed with a heart murmur and other fun doctor trips
• More updates here
• Brings SO SO MUCH joy to our crazy little family

So come Friday morning when school is out and over, WHAT AM I GOING TO DO?!?!?!?!?

Well to help, yesterday I turned my kitchen counter into THIS

So we could create THESE:

I used items like THIS and THIS and THIS to keep the kids busy for at least an hour a day and keep their minds fresh with the things they learned in school.  They were So excited, Asher actually completed 1/2 of one of the work books I bought him for summer yesterday afternoon!  Hope this never changes, but I am sure someday I will be begging.

We also have lots of reading planned (library), swim lessons enrolled, crafts (rearing and waiting to go), summer movie program, concerts in the park, Farmers Markets...and one EXHAUSTED MAMA just thinking about it all!!  When does the next school year begin?

Good luck to everyone else and their summer ADVENTURES!  (what have you planned?)